Felix Hernandez becomes U.S. citizen
Felix Hernandez is set to officially become a United States citizen.
Hernandez passed his citizenship interview Monday morning and in the afternoon he completed the naturalization process and took the oath of allegiance at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services building in Tukwila
“It means a lot, I’m proud to be an American,” Hernandez said. “I’m just happy and so proud. I don’t even get this nervous when I’m pitching.”
Hernandez was naturalized a month after his wife, Sandra, did so.
He admitted that it was because she passed her citizenship test and Hernandez might have failed it the first time.
“I wasn’t prepared,” he said with a laugh. “I didn’t study. But I prepared for this one.
“So she got hers before me and I was a little pissed. I had to talk to her in the car about it afterward.”
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Once he arrived in the Mariners clubhouse, players blared “God Bless the U.S.A.” over the stereo and gave him a T-shirt to honor the occasion.
Hernandez was born in Valencia, Venezuela, and he and Sandra have two children, Mia and Jeremy, who were born in the U.S. They have homes in Miami and Bellevue.
He said the political tensions, economic uncertainty and food and medicine shortages in Venezuela under president Nicolas Maduro are similar to what they were under Hugo Chavez, who died in 2013.
“I had it in my mind then that I was going to be an American,” Hernandez said. “Now it makes it easier and hopefully now I can bring my mom and my dad and they can stay here with me. It’s a hard situation in Venezuela. It’s really bad.”
He said he sends food to his mom in Venezuela every month.
“It’s crazy,” Hernandez said. “I don’t think any of the players are going to go to Venezuela right now.”
Robinson Cano, who is from the Dominican Republic, said he became a U.S. Citizen about seven years ago. He said some players wait so long to do it because they get so busy during the season, focusing on baseball, and many go back to their home countries, like Cano does, in the offseason.
“But it’s so good, especially for him to be a citizen,” Cano said. “And now he can get all the benefits everyone here gets and it makes it easier for him, and it will be especially easier to go through the airport now.”
Nelson Cruz, who is also from the Dominican Republic, said he’s in the process of becoming a U.S. citizen, as well.
Hernandez has been a Mariner his entire 14-year career and has one more year remaining on a seven-year, $175 million contract extension he signed in 2013.
Hernandez has been out of the Mariners rotation since Sept. 8, when he exited after four-plus innings against the Yankees because of a right hamstring injury. The 32-year-old is set to make his final start of what has been the worst season of his career on Wednesday in the Mariners’ series finale against the Athletics at Safeco Field.
Hernandez, the two-time American League ERA champion and the AL’s 2010 Cy Young winner, has a career-high 5.46 ERA this season. His previous high ERA for a year was 4.52 in his first full season in 2006.
Hernandez four times has competed for Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic. He also has more wins than any Venezuelan-born pitcher in MLB history, passing former Mariners right-hander Freddy Garcia last year. He currently holds records for most starts, innings and strikeouts among pitchers from Venezuela.
He signed as a 16-year-old with the Seattle Mariners in 2002 and after playing in the Venezuelan Summer League he was in the country playing for short-season Single-A Everett in 2003, then with Double-A San Antonio in 2004 (when he was the Mariners’ minor league pitcher of the year). He made his major league debut as a 19-year-old in 2005.
Mariners add affiliate
The Mariners announced a two-year deal with the West Virginia Power on Monday as their Single-A affiliate.
West Virginia replaces the Clinton Lumberkings.
The Power was the Pirates’ affiliate for the past nine seasons and before that has been with the Brewers, Blue Jays, Royals, Reds and Cubs.
This completes agreements with all the Mariners’ minor league affiliates after they agreed to a four-year deal with the Tacoma Rainiers to remain as their Triple-A affiliate and signed a two-year extension with short-season Single-A Everett AquaSox.
The Power play in Charleston, West Virginia, where former Mariners catcher Dan Wilson made his professional debut with the Charleston Wheelers in 1990 after the Cincinnati Reds drafted him in the seventh round in 1990.
So here’s how the Mariners’ minor league affiliates shape up for 2019:
▪ Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers
▪ Double-A Arkansas Travelers
▪ High Single-A Modesto Nuts
▪ Single-A West Virginia Power
▪ Short-season Single-A Everett AquaSox
▪ Rookie Arizona League Mariners
▪ Rookie Dominican Summer League Mariners
On tap
Right-hander Mike Leake (10-10, 4.10 ERA) starts for the Mariners against A’s left-hander Brett Anderson (4-5, 3.96 ERA) at 7:10 p.m. Tuesday at Safeco Field. The game will broadcast on Root Sports and 710-AM radio.
This story was originally published September 24, 2018 at 10:34 AM.